Ever since Apple released their “app store” (an online store for downloading additional software for the iPhone and iPod Touch) there have been a number of ‘gag’ applications. These applications are designed solely for amusement with minimal or no functional value. They are often created to fool others about the iPhone’s functionality. Some of these applications show the device as a fake x-ray machine, others imitate common household items such as virtual bubble wrap. Apps like these cater to the thousands of customers who love going to others and saying “hey, look what my phone can do.” I never paid much attention to these trivial applications, at least not until I came upon iHijab.
I personally find the mobile software space to be fascinating, especially the iPhone’s app store. There are new innovative Islamically centered applications released on the app store every day that can considerably improve Muslim lifestyles. Sophisticated applications like iQuran and iHadith may be the best and most effective ways to read our religious texts digitally. iPray is the easiest way to check prayer times and find the direction of qibla, it even uses the iPhone’s GPS and compass capabilities to customize timings and direction specifically for where you are. Zabihah Halal uses GPS to display nearby masjids, halal groceries and halal restaurants with reviews and ratings from thousands of users. It’s a very exciting time in the mobile industry and the best applications are yet to come. To make sure I’m always up to date, I always browse through the iPhone app store to see what’s new.
When I came upon iHijab while browsing for new applications I was immediately intrigued and installed it to check it out. The application allows you to choose different styles of hijab that you can place on top of pictures from your photo library. You can zoom and move around the picture you choose so that the person’s face fits the hijab, it’s not perfect but it’s pretty close to faking the look of a hijab. The creators of the application, Fishbone Consultancy, describe the app on their website as follows:
*** Surprise everybody with these photos. ***
This identity filter for your iPhone enables you to change your friends’ clothes to a hijab or burkha within seconds.
• Easy to use Hijab Photo Frames
• Change your friends’ identity within seconds
• Automatically Twitter Hijab Pictures
• Automatically put pictures on Facebook
• Automatically email Hijab Pictures
• Choose between 14 identities
• High resolution
Take pictures of your friends wearing a Hijab or Burkha. It works very easy: just open iHijab and choose a picture frame. The Hijab will be displayed as a layer over the iPhone’s camera so you will see the results directly!
The High-Resolution pictures can be emailed, twittered, placed on your facebook wall or saved into your iPhone photo library, all with one click!
The hijab selection screen, shown to the right, shows the different types of hijabs you can choose. This is where I started to become suspicious, I had no mixed feelings about the application up until I saw this screen. As you can see, some of the photos have ridiculous facial expressions and odd backdrops. Is this making fun of Muslims? I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt but I couldn’t get over some of the thumbnails for hijab selection. Take for example, the one with the White House in the background on the far left in the second row. What is the purpose of this picture? It shows the man in the hijab clearly mocking the camera while in front of the White House of the United States. Is this implying that Muslims criticize the U.S. government? And what about the hijab selection in the top right where the man is under a camel?
Okay Tareq, slow down. I realized I might have been over reacting and I looked for others opinion. I brought the application to my Mother, explained it to her, how to use it and asked her what she thought. “This is so stupid” she said. I asked “Why? Do you find it offensive?”. She replied “Yes, it’s just stupid”. “I asked what if it were an application showing cowboy hats? There are many people around the world that wear them as a part of their culture.” She still felt uncomfortable about the application but couldn’t specifically say why.
I then brought it to my sister, I showed her the application and let her use it. In minutes there was a picture of me in a hijab and giggles all around. She loved it! She didn’t find the application offensive and took it as a joke, she saw no considerable attempts at real mockery.
What started to really intrigue me was not the application itself but rather how people viewed the symbol of the hijab. The application description said nothing about Muslims or Islam, was it really targeting us at all? Is the hijab not much more than a piece of clothing but a sign of modesty and respect? This application could simply be a look into a world that is unknown to many people, it could be seen equivalent as an application that dresses one in a Japanese kimono or an Inuit snow jacket. Would that be offensive? Then again, the hijab is also a very prominent symbol to represent Islam. It is used in marketing to symbolize and stereotype Muslims as much as long black beards and salwars are.
I wanted to see more views on the application so I started looking at customer reviews and ratings on the app store. The average rating was 2.5 stars of 5 star with most ratings being 1 star. Here are some of the reviews:
horrible app – Crs1unnot
“not only is this tasteless and racist, but it’s NOT FUNNY. it’s not about being politically correct, it’s about not being an a-hole.
I hope this app is swiftly removed”
A bit racial but fun – Hadi Saeed
This application is a bit racial in a way but it doesn’t matter that much since it is only an app.
Great up!!! – y4j
Really fun!
BIG CHEESE – NORWICH917
A LAFF RIOT ..!!!!
Again, mixed thoughts. I was still confused and I didn’t know whether I found this application offensive or not. I guess there is nothing wrong with the idea but the selection screen really bothered me. I left the application on my to-do list to review for ProductMuslim and decided I should give it some more thought. The next time I opened the app store I noticed there was an update for it. The description of the update was: “new hijab overview screen”. I installed it and the only change was the selection screen now with attractive women with normal smiling facial expressions. Now why did they do this? It was the only change in the update so they must have considered it significant enough to alter.
The selection screen has changed, shouldn’t my mind now be at ease? I still don’t know. As I mentioned, evaluating my view on this application has more to do with the hijab than the app itself. I realized I’m trying to understand what the symbol means to me. Is it offensive because I’m being defensive? Would I raise this question if it was a religious symbol from something other than islam?
What do you think? Do you find this application offensive? If so, why? Ask others around you, I think you’ll be surprised to hear so many mixed reviews.
Looking forward to hearing what you all think!
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15 Responses
I think we should be able to laugh at ourselves. Amid all the madness someone has found a way to make the hijab funny. What is there to not like in that?
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I think it is fine to share culture and get understanding by people enjoying it on other ways. Positive news that a company like Apple is alowing these apps.
Like your sister, it brings a laugh. Isnt that what we Muslims need a bit more worldwide. No negativity but a modern view with respect.
I say +1 for Hijab
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Since I am mentioned in this article, I thought to add my two cents. I thought this application was hillarious. I still do.
However I will say I did not notice the nuances in the selection screen. I can see how something like this would further negative stereotypes. And that’s not cool. However I will say that I didn’t notice it at all.
I think it may have a lot to do with how we muslims view ourselves. If you’re always on the defensive and under the impression that someone out to get us… you’ll find things that you feel are doing that.
It is my firm belief that the creators of the game only intended to make it humorous. And didn’t mean any offense. Which is proved by the fact that they altered the selection screen when some found it offensive.
I think as muslims… sometimes… we need to lighten up a bit. Learn to laugh at ourselves a bit. Not always take things so seriously.
Also I will add… when I saw the original selection screen my first gut reaction was to put boys in hijab. Everyone has seen girls in hijab and there’s nothing “funny” about that. But guys in hijab… that’s funny. Its like seeing a guy in a dress. And the funny faces furthered that reaction. Which is why the first thing I did was put my brother in a hijab. And yes in case you’re wondering… yes… it was hillarious
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I think it’s a fun app in spite of the faces in the thumbnails and what a great discussion, it’s interesting to see the 2 differing points of view in your article
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So when are you going to make the beard application Tareq?
I actually think this kind of humour could have potential in empowering the hijab rather than disrespecting it. A way to present it to the public in a comfortable way, with potential for a laugh, will hopefully de-alienate the hijab. The fact that the developers changed the thumbnails is definitely hopefully a sign of sincerity, and props to them. Honestly, the strange facial expressions from a guy in the hijab did not give me the best first impression. I wouldn’t say I’m offended as a Muslim, but as a comedy lover… just didn’t find them that funny
Showing woman in the hijab is definitely more appropriate given a hope for this application would be to remove misconceptions about the hijab and show that yes, a hijabi can have a laugh! Don’t believe me, put your face in this iPhone app and have a smile.
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tareq Reply:
5.4.2010
I see your point Aatif.
What concerns me the most are the stereotypes that this application furthers. Even with the silly male facial expressions removed, the backdrops with camels and the pyramids are still there. The vast majority of Muslims, and of people who wear hijab, don’t even live near a desert. I fear that backdrops like those, when used with peoples photos could continue an idea that Muslim women are not from North-American societies and are hard to relate to. I honestly wouldn’t have any problems with the application if it had just used normal, everyday backdrops.
What do you think? Do the backdrops not bother you?
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Aatif Reply:
5.4.2010
I guess this can be elaborated by the majorly perceived notion of Islam being culturally identified with Arabic/Desi culture, hence all backdrops related to Islam carry a middle eastern/Desi vibe. So this is also a reflection on what people ignorantly think of the middle east, not necessarily just Muslims, however is reflected upon Muslims given my previous point. So I would ask how you feel about stereotypes of Muslim being stereotypically culturally identified as Arabs/Desi? I think that may be the root cause of your concern with the backdrop and the ignorance behind it. A pretty large concept to think about, but I’d be interested to see how the global face of Islam looks like in 100+ years when people are more exposed, primarily through developing communication methods, to Muslims in diverse societies around the world.
So to answer your question: yes the backdrops do bother me a bit me with their ignorance, but I kinda understand.
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I do believe that this app is a light-hearted attempt in bringing a smile to people’s faces on the part of those who created the app. And rightfully so. What I am concerned with however is someone who does not have any concern for Muslims (or who downright hates them), taking this app, making pics of themselves in a hijab and posting it all over facebook in an attempt to poke fun at the idea of putting on a hijab. I worry about the not-so-Muslim-friendly folk out there getting a hold of this. Otherwise, it is quite fun if used properly and by the right people
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I think it’s quite funny. At one of the summer camps I went to, some of the guys went around wearing an actual hijab for couple of hours just because they thought it was cool. It was their first time meeting someone who wore hijab.
Keep in mind that this is one of those apps you can only use for so long and the fun runs out! I don’t see it being addictive or lasting for long time.
Also, we ourselves forget that hijab is more than a piece of head cover even though we only call the scarf on a woman’s head, hijab. Just wearing a head cover doesn’t amount to hijab, it has other requirements, which is where the awareness needs to be.
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It is no surprise to see Muslims doing what they are best at doing: making a big deal out of nothing, while simultaneously having real problems on an international scale that sincerely elicit our attention. As a community scrutinized by mainstream media for being the antagonized dissenters of modern, Western integration, the unnecessary hatred of stupid things like an ‘iHijab’ fuel the unproductive anger that is endemic to our society. Quite simply put, we have bigger and better things to focus on, so quit getting your hijabs/beards in a twist over this.
It is not a stretch from the truth to suggest that Islam is much hated right now through the lens of right-wing neo-con brands of mainstream thought which tend to monopolize over the media. But likewise, the Bush Administration was probably the most hated and mocked government as well. However, they didn’t spend their time and energy chastising every Condoleeza Rice cartoon or Bush shooter game … Instead, they ensued with their agenda of causing mass annihilation of entire governmental infrastructures costing the lives of millions of innocent people to dominate foreign economies …but you get the point. They didn’t mull over every empty criticism. And they were [maliciously] successful.
When you analyze this concept from a cultural/historical viewpoint, you can understand that Muslims get riled up about nothing due to Islam’s novelty amongst other monotheistic religions as well. The stigmas accredited to a post-9/11 world don’t exactly help the psychology of Muslims either. The subject of ‘Islam’ is a terse topic of discussion and it is not used as flagrantly because of the political tensions infused into it. There is just a lot of baggage and the hardest thing sometimes is getting people to see past that inferiority complex. But if people don’t feel comfortable enough to joke around you, these tensions will never dissolve. When I say things about my hijab like “oh yeah, I just installed my ‘headgear’”, my non-Muslim friends laugh and they are surprised at how easily I can make fun of something they thought was taboo to laugh about. It is fine to laugh at ourselves and certainly isn’t condemned by the sunnah. When we don’t laugh, we get embroiled into freakish standards of political correctness that do nothing but create counter-productive semantics…euphemisms to discriminate.
Additionally, anger is not bad. In the words of Rage Against the Machine’s frontman “Anger is a gift” -Zack de la Rocha. It is a gift when it is channelled into something intellectually and compassionately productive. Something that stirs within us an acute contemplative will to fight injustice. So let’s channel that anger toward alleviating situations of dearth, poverty and injustice instead of making a controversy out of the iHijab.
Peace.
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Aatif Reply:
4.15.2010
While I completely understand where you are coming from, working in international development myself with special regards to public awareness, I would not feel comfortable ridiculing these conversations and throwing them out the door. This conversation is for a specific demographic based on engaging a diverse society. There are many different comfort levels within society, and some feel more comfortable sharing thoughts in forums they are familiar with, and hopefully they can learn more through interaction and go from there. This is usually more appropriate in social scenarios rather than jumping in the deep end, at the risk of being overwhelmed and burning out. As you mentioned, casual jokes and conversations with friends can serve a great purpose. We need to train ourselves to deal with various scenarios we will experience in the greater public sphere. Your concerns are definitely valid, but you should also look at the road map to get to your goals that you mentioned ie. “alleviating situations of dearth, poverty and injustice”. While these conversations don’t directly impact these outcome areas, they do play a role in inviting people to small conversations preparing them to lead into the greater conversations you alluded to, once they feel they can.
As far as I can tell in this thread, people are quite fond of iHijab for the same reasons you mentioned. It’s alright to have a laugh and to smile is a charity, hence it is our duty not to be stingy with it
Best of luck in your, and our (community), pursuit to alleviating situations of death, poverty and injustice.
p.s. I appreciate your narrative on “anger.” Very nice & productive way to put it. Stay angry and keep on keepin on!
Peace
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Soo, I kind of skipped over the intro where it explains that this app was a gag. When I read the description of the iHijab app, I was so excited. Finally, an app that solves the daily morning dilemma of finding the right hijab that matches your outfit…kinda like the dress up barbie games (don’t judge, I have a younger sister and her friends come over often) but actually useful. With the iHijab, you can do the matching without even rolling out of bed. Or imagine going hijab shopping without having to explain to the vendor that you’re looking for a hijab to go with your shirt that has candy apple red stripes.
Then I saw the goofy selection screen and was like pfft, what a jerkface…here I thought your app was so cool and functional but you seem to be content with seeing who looks the goofiest with the hijab on. I guess it’s funny, but feels a little like cybersquatting to waste iHijab on an app with such little utility.
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tareq Reply:
5.4.2010
I had never thought that iHijab could actually be useful.
If lets say, there was an application that allowed you to ‘try’ on different hijabs with different outfits, do you think sisters would actually use it? Do you think setting up the different outfits would be difficult (i.e different shirts, colors, patterns)?
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Shame that this app has been removed from the Apple Store.
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tareq Reply:
6.1.2010
Hmm.. that’s an interesting observation Mike. You’re right, it’s off the Appstore and the developers don’t even mention the application on their homepage (http://www.fishbonedevelopment.com/) anymore.
I’ll contact the developers to find out more. Thanks for the share!
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